Features

Close to 3,000 attendees, 109 exhibitors and three days at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. WFA brings together reports from thirteen exhibitors on what they brought to SuperExpo 2026, why, and what it tells the trade about where demand is heading.

R+T Asia 2026 was the biggest edition yet, more than 750 exhibitors filling four halls in Shanghai. Scale was the headline, but it was not the whole story: wider fabrics, smarter motors and several genuine engineering advances were on show alongside it. WFA reports on what stood out, with the caveat that booth claims await verification.

With Australian visitor numbers thinner than in previous years and WSAA just a fortnight away, three Australian exhibitors still made the trip to Shanghai for R+T Asia 2026. What they found on the floor, PVC dominating as families tighten budgets, local fabrication emerging as a hybrid strategy, and Australian software drawing interest from South Korea to Turkey, tells a sharper story about where this market is heading than any trend report could.

Demand for blockout is pushing suppliers to reframe what they sell. Shaw, Meyer Blinds and Ricky Richards each arrive at mid-2026 with expanded collections that go past opacity to width, material credentials and durability. For retailers and installers, the shared message is that blockout now trades on recycled yarn content, strata compliance, rolling quality and warranty as much as on light control.

Recessed ceiling details and wave headings have pushed curtain tracking from hardware afterthought to precision specification. Two new releases to the Australian market address both ends of the brief: the track that has to disappear into the architecture, and the quoting tool that has to price it right first time.

Vertical blinds carry a reputation built on price and convenience rather than design, leaving retailers with thin margin and limited specification appeal. Silent Gliss by Meyer Blinds is making the case that the category belongs at the premium end of the market, and has the tracking hardware and textile range to back it.

Australia’s existing homes average 1.8 energy stars while new builds must hit seven, yet window furnishings have never had an independent energy number to put in front of a customer. WSAA’s WincovER simulator, launched at SuperExpo 2026, delivers one. The implications run from the sales floor to national energy policy.

SuperExpo 2026 returns to the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre from 10 to 12 June. Four exhibitors across software, outdoor blinds, components, and motorisation give WFA a preview of what they are bringing to the floor.

Labour shortages, rising input costs, and growing demand for custom orders are exposing the limits of manual production in Australian blind factories. From CNC fabric cutting through to automated end-of-line packaging, three suppliers outline what the new generation of machinery is delivering on the floor.

Urban density is pushing demand for external screens beyond the traditional 5% openness default. Three suppliers, Ricky Richards, HVG and Weinor Australia, explain what installers need to understand about performance, specification and the limits of what external screens can actually do.